Malta denies trying to reopen EU tuna debate
The Ministry of Resources and Rural Affairs this evening denied that Malta was trying to reopen the EU debate on the proposed ban on the international trade of tuna during the CITES talks in Doha, but said it had requested legal advice on the interpretation of the EU position.
Malta last week was the only member state to vote against the EU decision to back the proposal to ban the tuna trade.
The French environment ambassador in the Doha talks, Laurent Stefanini, this afternoon was quoted as having criticised Malta and Portugal for trying to reopen the EU debate.
The Resources Ministry said the EU position was based on certain conditions, including stock assessments that would be carried out in October by the Scientific Committee of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT).
“Malta asked for a clarification from the EU Council Legal Services of how the EU’s mandate should be interpreted in case the conditions agreed upon by the EU Member States are not taken on board in the final vote on bluefin tuna,” the ministry said. The legal position is still being awaited.
Halting cross-border trade in bluefin tuna caught in the eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean is at the top of the agenda of the Doha meeting.
Japan, which consumes three-quarters of the global catch of this dwindling species, is campaigning fiercely against the proposal.
But signs of cracks emerged today within the European Union (EU) which, with the United States, is the motion's biggest backer.
"Malta and Portugal wanted to reopen discussions on what had been agreed as the European stance," said Stefanini. "The outcome (of the CITES talks) is probably going to make some member states unhappy."
At a meeting in Brussels last week, EU nations overruled opposition from Malta to say they accepted evidence stocks of tuna in the two fisheries had crashed over the past 30 years, bringing the species to the verge of extinction.
The idea is to include fish from the Mediterranean and eastern Atlantic under CITES' Appendix 1, although catches in the Pacific and elsewhere will still be allowed.
The EU has also asked for implementation to be postponed until a November meeting of International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), the inter-governmental fishery group that manages tuna stocks in the Atlantic Ocean and adjacent seas.
In Tokyo, meanwhile, Japanese Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Hirotaka Akamatsu said Japan now had China's support to oppose the ban.
"China has not announced its stance officially, but is actively lobbying other countries to oppose" the ban, Akamatsu told reporters. "There also are countries which are neutral or wavering."
CITES has 175 nations, around 150 of which are attending the conference in the Qatari capital.
Under its rulebook, a two-thirds majority of those voting is needed to approve a proposal, although Japan has already said it will ignore any ban.
Tokyo argues that bluefin is not facing extinction, although it acknowledges that the current size of catch is probably unsustainable. The solution, it insists, is stricter management of fisheries.
Bluefin is used especially in sushi and sashimi and can fetch more than 100,000 dollars per fish on the Tokyo market.
Malta is considered to have the largest tuna ranching facilities in the Mediterranean and Maltese fisherman also have become dependent on tuna exports to Japan to sustain their living.
According to the Federation of Aquaculture Producers, tuna exports have become the third most exported Maltese product, amounting to about €100 million in value last year.
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Christopher Grainger
Mar 17th 2010, 10:07
@ Mark Dawson
At present there is no captive breeding of Tuna, were this possible the problems the wild stock is encountering could be rectified reasonably quickly.
The pens that you are probably referring to are where entire shoals are placed for fattening prior to culling and release to the market.
The method of capture is extremely efficient, involving spotter planes, and seine netting vessels. It is this efficiency which creates the problem: an entire shoal is captured and ergo the breeding potential of that shoal of Tuna is removed by 100%.
The traditional Maltese methods for fishing Tuna were sustainable, and should be preserved and encouraged, the same being true for sustainable fishing worldwide, however industrial fishing without the possibility of a captive breeding program spells disaster for the Blue-fin Tuna.
Mario Tabone-Vassallo
Mar 17th 2010, 09:12
Malta l-pajjiz wahdani li vvotat kontra d-decizjoni tal-UE li twaqqaf il-kummerc tat-tonn, meta taf li l-vot taghha m'hu ser jiswa' ghal xejn hlief ihammrilna wiccna. Sinjal ta' nuqqas ta' intelligenza. Tghajjir li l-politici taghna mirghuna lill-individwi b'but fond.
Il-Kummissarju Malti accetta li fl-UE jinzerghu organizmi genetikament modifikati meta l-massa tan-nies kontrihom, izda Barroso riedhom. Naraw jispiccax fuq xi bord ta' Siemens jew Monsanto meta jispicca barroso kif gara ghan-Nord Stream
Ser niehdu fama tajba
M Cassar
Mar 16th 2010, 23:19
Just employ the base to asia..it seems japan and china are doing fine just go and fish there then. Why all the legal fees and trouble for nothing no one listens to small Malta.
fred mallia
Mar 16th 2010, 21:54
the maltese fishermen have very limited equipement to fish for tuna. but the italians, spanish, french and others, base in malta, a number of small aircraft to inform them where the tuna flocks are so they fo on spot! Is the maltese govenment stopping these flights from malta?
alfred
Adrian Wirth
Mar 16th 2010, 20:10
The objective of fishing policy is or ought to be global sustainability of fish stocks. There appears to be sound scientific and statistical evidence that if Blue Fin Tuna fishing is permitted on a global basis to continue at present levels that sustainable breeding stock levels will not be maintained and therefore the eventual extinction fo the specie is virtually guaranteed. What right does man have to knowlingly create circumstances that ultimately brings extinction? We had a similar case in Cornwall some years ago with over fishing in the western approaches. The fishing associations of Cornwall, Britany, Ireland and Wales were instrumental in creating what was known as the Western Approaches Fishing Box, a large breeding zone where fishing was banned by mutual agreement. By discussion the Portuguese, Spanish, Russian and Scottish mega-fleets were persuaded to respect the box, which they did. Then after pressure from the Spanish in particular, who held the majority of seats on the E.U. Fisheries Committees, the EU Fisheries Commissioner intervened and the voluntary box was declared illegal. Within one season all the recovery work of ten years was lost. Our village lost ten boats, ten family livelyhoods lost. Is that what we want here?
lgalea
Mar 16th 2010, 21:01
Thank you for showing the eu and the Spanish for what they really are. Environmental destroyers. It is not the Maltese fishermen who are causing the demise of the tuna but the Spanish, French and the Japanese. The Maltese fishermen only catch tuna with lines not with purse seiners and other destructive methods which catch everything. It is a well-known fact that the Spanish destroyed the British fishing grounds because apart from being the most destructive, it is the eu's destructive policy of allowing fishermen from other member countries to fish in the other members fishing grounds that is causing all the destruction, because the local fishermen take care because their livelihood depends on it but the foreign fishermen do not care a hoot. THat is what the eu really is. An environment destroyer.
Roderick Micallef
Mar 16th 2010, 19:26
This is another practical example that the European Union is not only shine and glitter. I am not justifying the over fishing of tuna, however, if Malta is considered to have the largest tuna ranching facilities in the Mediterranean then it should also be allowed to export some of the tuna proportionally with the size of the farming industry.
IF this is not possible, the European Union should guarantee the same revenue from the tuna exports which is around €100 million to Malta annually towards the re-generation of the Blue Fin Tuna to replace the revenue lost from the exports.
The fishermen that have become dependent on tuna exports to Japan should be trained by the European Union to cultivate and re-generate the Blue Fin Tuna and in turn will be able to sustain their living this way instead of exporting Tuna to Japan.
If the European Union issues bans but doesn't counter react the ban with a productive policy then I am afraid that the Euro Zone will be in peril, later or sooner then any one might even imagine, if not in peril already especially if one mentions the case of Greece and the possible pending bailouts!
John Inguanez
Mar 16th 2010, 19:20
@Joseph Aquilina
Why should we lose this industry when the Pacific is still open for fishing? Either a ban everywhere or nowhere.
Joseph Aquilina
Mar 17th 2010, 02:02
The Atlantic bluefin tuna is marked as "Critically Endangered" while the Pacific bluefin tuna is so far only marked as "Vulnerable" - yes they are two different species. Critically Endangered is the last category before extinct in the wild or otherwise extinct. If that happens then we would really be at risk of loosing this industry ... only difference is that it will be forever!! Also we do not know the consequence to the marine food chain which might lead to other species getting extinct.
tony abela
Mar 16th 2010, 19:11
"Malta is considered to have the largest tuna ranching facilities in the Mediterranean and Maltese fisherman also has become dependent on tuna exports to Japan to sustain their living."
I strongly believe that this statement is misleading to say the least. Maltese fishermen (not fisherman) do not own and manage the tune pens in Malta, but it is a handful of speculators who do. Thus they are the fat pigs who are worried about Malta losing the €100 million. It is true that through this activity of tuna penning, the Maltese fishermen are effected as they sell their fish catch as food to these tuna pens and thus the price of fish in malta has increased and so did the fishermen's profit.
Can we have an official statement which tells us how much of the €100 million goes and remains in Maltese pockets and/or Malta Treasury? How many foreign and Maltese persons are directly employed fulltime and part-time in this industry?
I hope we have an official answer, as I have been asking these same questions for the last two years, without any answers given.
Gianni Xuereb
Mar 16th 2010, 18:44
@Joseph Aquilina: Well said Joseph. Shame on Malta for opposing such a motion.
Edward Camilleri
Mar 16th 2010, 18:11
This is a disgrace. Why should Malta take such a stance? Who is the government representing, us the common citizens or a bunch of businessmen who do not see beyond the Euro? @J Farrugia Yes we will fight for our national interest, but this is not the greediness of a few businessmen but the survival of this species. With a ban Malta can still harvest tuna for local consumption, this is the best compromise I think.
Marco Cremona
Mar 16th 2010, 18:09
@ Mark Dawson The tuna in the farms are tuna caught in the wild and fattened in the farms. @Joseph Aquilina. Good point. We are interested in sustainablility and environmental issues AS LONG as.......... Political parties and the environment are in a marriage of convenience.
Stephen Borg
Mar 16th 2010, 18:02
The Maltese authorities have again acted upon short sightedness. The Blue Fin Tuna specie is an endangered one and if the ban would not be imposed we would be able to continue fishing for Blue Fin Tuna but I ask for how long would we be able to do so before all remaining stocks become extinct. Where is our commonsense.
Joseph Aquilina
Mar 16th 2010, 17:36
Thank you Malta for making today one of those days in which I am not proud to be Maltese! If money has become more important then the safe guard of a complete species then really here in Malta we have lost all our values - values that no crucifix on a wall will help us bring back!! Is this one of the lessons that this government wants to teach to our children? Is this the world that this government is preparing for our children? I was really wishing Malta would be on the "right" side on this one! However it seems that we have two parties that regarding agriculture preach one thing and do another! Why is PL so silent and why did PN promise sustainable development and then vote for a solution that is anything but sustainable!!?
Mark Dawson
Mar 16th 2010, 17:16
im sorry if im saying something silly here but malta farms most of its tuna no? if so why cant this continue?
J Farrugia
Mar 16th 2010, 16:53
The French fight for their national interests, Malta likewise has to fight harder for its national interests. And that Mr French Ambassadors, we will continue to do. Unless off course, you put your money where your mouths are.